PARIS — In exactly one month, the most talented athletes on the planet will float down the Seine River in Paris to celebrate the first Olympic Games since back-to-back events were canceled due to the global pandemic.
The opening ceremony of the Summer Olympics, scheduled for July 26, will mark the first time that Paris will open its doors to millions of fans and thousands of athletes' families who have been effectively shut out in Tokyo's 2021 summer games and Beijing's 2022 winter games.
The Tokyo Summer Olympics took place a year after the coronavirus pandemic brought the global economy to a halt, but without fans in the stands.
A year later, a small number of spectators were allowed at the Winter Olympics, but the competition took place largely under segregated conditions.
Three years ago, 14-year-old Canadian Summer McIntosh jumped into a swimming pool while her family was more than 6,000 miles away.
“In Tokyo, we were just grateful the Olympics were happening at the time. It was so much fun watching the Olympics on TV and cheering on the whole Canadian team,” said Jill McIntosh, the mother of former Canadian Olympic swimmer who plans to cheer in person in Paris.
“But then I look back and I'm like, 'Oh man, it was kind of a shame I never got to actually go there.' So, when it comes to Paris, I'm really, really excited. It would be such a fun experience if I could actually go there.”
Paris has already been transformed
Some of Paris' most iconic locations have been transformed into venues.
The Place de la Concorde will be closed off and a grandstand will be built around the world-famous obelisk, and this historic site will host modern sports such as breaking, skateboarding and BMX cycling.
The Champs-Élysées avenue, which runs between the Place de la Concorde and the Arc de Triomphe, is currently partially closed but will be completely closed during the Olympics, allowing tourists to walk without fear of Paris' notorious traffic jams.
“I love seeing the stands, the Seine, the Eiffel Tower. It's so beautiful,” said Michelle Los Banos, 45, a government worker from Washington, D.C., as she walked past the Place de la Concorde on the Champs-Elysees. “It's impossible to go to the Champs-Elysees without a car. It's unbelievable.”
America wants to produce the world's fastest man
Pedestrians are expected to navigate busy roads while American sprinter Noah Lyles will have his sights set on the fast 100m lane to win gold.
Despite winning bronze in the 200m in Tokyo, Lyles failed to qualify for the 100m at the last Olympics and has openly spoken about struggling with mental health issues, but has high hopes for Paris.
“I think the depression has put a lot more pressure on me in 2021. Normally I just enjoy it so I don't feel any pressure,” said Lyles, who qualified in the 100 meters at the Olympic Trials in Eugene, Oregon, over the weekend.
It will be the first time an American has won the gold medal in the 100 meters, the most highly-anticipated event, and claimed the title of “fastest man in the world” since Justin Gatlin did so in Athens, Greece in 2004, in the ancient pre-Usain Bolt era of track and field.
“All I have to do is be myself. I always tell my kids, 'Be yourself,'” Lyles said. “If people think I'm corny, that's okay. I'm corny. But you know what? I'm corny and I'm winning.”
Shacarie Richardson's second chance
Team USA continues to perform well, with qualifying events now or soon to begin in high-profile events such as swimming, track and field and gymnastics.
American sprinter Sha'Cary Richardson finally has a chance at a gold medal after running the fastest 100 meters in the world this weekend.
Richardson, one of the stars of US track and field who missed the Tokyo Games after testing positive for THC, said on NBC's “Today” show that she had taken it to help her cope with the death of her mother.
The US aims for a new shock
The United States is expected to dominate in the pool, led by Caleb Dressel (50 freestyle, 100 butterfly, 4×100 freestyle relay) and Katie Ledecky (200 freestyle, 400 freestyle, 800 freestyle, 1,500 freestyle).
Among the biggest threats to ruin America's quadrennial pool party are Frenchman Leon Marchand from Arizona State University, Canadian wunderkind McIntosh and an Australian group led by Ariarne Titmuss.
Australia believes this could be their strongest swimming team ever.
Olympic officials may be in trouble
Open water swimming, including a triathlon, will take place on the Seine.
But the waters of one of the world's most famous rivers remain brown and raging, leading to the cancellation of rehearsals for the opening ceremony this week.
Paris 2024 spokeswoman Anne Deccan insisted the river was ready to host the Olympics.
“At this stage, we are confident in the efforts being made by the city of Paris,” she said. “We have been hit by bad weather in recent weeks, but we are confident that the situation will improve once the summer weather arrives in Paris.”
USA Gymnastics to Decide on a Date
The U.S. gymnastics roster is set to be announced this weekend in Minneapolis, in what could be the most competitive U.S. trials in the sport's history.
For example, Simone Biles, Suni Lee and Jade Carey, who have all won at least one gold medal, will face off in the individual all-around competition on both days.
If Biles qualifies for the Paris Games, she will become the first American gymnast since Dominique Dawes to compete in three Olympic Games.
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U.S. national team coach Emma Hayes was hired after the team suffered a disastrous defeat at last year's World Cup, exiting in the round of 16. The U.S. women's national team has fallen to a once-unthinkable No. 5 in the FIFA world rankings.
The U.S. women's team has never won three consecutive World Cups or Olympic titles.
Joy on the field, anxiety and uncertainty elsewhere
The tournament takes place against the backdrop of two major armed conflicts.
The attacks on Ukraine began on February 24, 2022, just four days after the Beijing Olympics ended. Ukraine had threatened to boycott if Russian and Belarusian athletes were allowed to compete as neutrals. Russia has condemned the restrictions as discriminatory and has blocked its athletes from traveling to Paris.
The Israeli military is launching a fierce offensive in Gaza following a Hamas terrorist attack on October 7.
The tournament is expected to feature a large number of Palestinian athletes, many of them from the Palestinian diaspora, including Omar Yasser Ismail, who this year became the first Palestinian to qualify to compete in the Olympic taekwondo competition.
“I'm thinking about the children of Palestine and the children of Gaza, and I hope they see me as a role model,” Ismail, 18, who grew up in Dubai, told NBC News recently.
Keir Simmons reported from Paris, Chantal da Silva from London and David K. Lee from New York.